Spiraling
by Sugarberries
Summary: (Unfinished, may or may not come back to this one. Sorry!) Naruto is spiraling out of control, and his team is about to find out just how far he's gone. What can Team Seven do to bring him back from the brink? Rated M for drug use, alcohol abuse, and mentions self injury. SasuNaru/NaruSasu
1. Secrets

_This story is based in a more alternated universe where Sasuke returns and is forgiven, but Sai is still a part of the team._

_I do not own the characters in this story._

* * *

Tsunade shuffled the papers before her with a sigh, sitting back in her soft leather chair heavily. The situation the brat had put her in was really wearing on her soul. Tsunade was emotionally drained from watching the dismal youth demolish his body every night. She just couldn't handle another night of the heart-wrenching things he put himself through.

"Lady Tsunade…? Team Seven has arrived…" Shizune's voice peeped sleepily from behind the office door.

"Come in, come in," Tsunade straightened as the door swung open to produce Sakura, Sasuke, and Sai, "I have a very important job for you three… Something that I would never have any of you do under normal circumstances."

Sakura raised a single pink brow in interest as Sasuke asked what they all were thinking, "And Naruto is excluded from this mission due to…?"

"The fact that he is both the job and the client," Tsunade sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose and punctuating it all with a swig of sake, "You'll be watching Naruto during the evenings from now on… It'll take all three of you."

"Why on earth does he need to be watched?!" Sakura threw her hands to her hips in indignation, "He's practically an adult! He doesn't need a babysitter. And why us of all people?"

"Because I can't do it anymore…" Tsunade's voice cracked, causing a visible flinch from her addressees, "I can't; and I need someone to do it that I can trust."

The members of Team Seven became eerily silent for quite some time, clearly in shock of the glaringly obvious chink in their commanding officer's armor.

"What do you need us to exactly…?" Sai finally ended the silence in a less typical manner than usual, "And when do we need to be there?"

"Be there at five-thirty. That's when he'll start. Don't stop him from doing anything but leaving his house, or endangering civilians," Tsunade handed Shizune a manila folder from her desk, overflowing with papers, "Fill out one of the empty sheets and return it directly to me tomorrow morning. To no one else, understand?"

"Yes, Lady Tsunade," Team Seven bowed in chorus, Sai taking the folder from Shizune, and swiftly left the room to make preparations for whatever was in store.

* * *

_The beginning chapter is short, but the rest should be longer. Hope you enjoyed this bit, should be uploading a couple more chapters in a few minutes._


	2. Spilling Forth

Naruto unbolted his door hurriedly, fully expecting to see Tsunade standing behind it with something delicious for him to eat. Possibly something sweet; glazed chicken… Or a loaf of bread, perhaps.

"Yo, Baa-chan, I thou-" Naruto's face quickly shifted from one of hope to one of unnerved annoyance, "What are you three doing here…?"

"The Lady Hokage sent us. She says we're supposed to watch you in the evenings from now on," Sai smiled awkwardly placid, "I guess we'll be rooming with you during the nights, now."

Instead of replying Naruto scowled openly, and disappeared into the dimly lit interior of his apartment. His teammates decided to take this as an invitation to enter, regardless of Naruto's obviously foul humor, and let themselves in. The stench of alcohol, tobacco, and several other unidentified substances mixed together, attacking the other three's lungs as soon as they stepped inside. Sasuke seemed to have the worst time of it; coughing and stumbling over broken bottles in the floor.

"Do you never clean?" Sakura grimaced, unsure of whether to be shocked or disgusted. At this particular moment in time, she had decided on both.

"Baa-chan used to try, but it just comes back… I don't care enough to do it," Naruto plopped down on a floor cushion in the main room, turning his back to his friends, and his attention to the coffee table.

"You should. This place is a pig sty!" Sasuke gasped, eyes watering, "How can you live like this?"

"Very carefully…" Naruto began shuffling around, stuffing what the Team thought to be tobacco into a pipe, "Why do you care?"

Sasuke looked to Sakura, observing the same look on her face as Sai's. A look of disbelief and confusion. The same look that he knew also graced his own features.

Naruto pulled a black lighter from his pants pocket and set the pipe's insides ablaze, sucking the smoke from the tip like a fish swallows water. Instead of exhaling, like they thought he would, Naruto held the smoke in his lungs for at least twenty seconds before he coughed a few times and stood to face them, bleary-eyed, but with a mischievous smile.

"You three can sit on the couch," Naruto's voice was raspy and tinged with a tone of entertainment, "That's where Baa-chan normally watches me from. I hope she told you not to try and stop me… Because I'm not going to."

Naruto staggered into his kitchen, leaving his teammates gaping in shock and disbelief behind him. Sai, of course, was the first to pull himself together.

"W-was that…?" Sai almost giggled, "Whoa… I guess I should've seen that coming."

"Shut up, Sai…" Sakura crawled on to the couch Naruto had pointed out earlier, eyes threatening to water, "I don't understand… I thought he was happy… and much nicer than this…"

"Hn…" Sasuke clenched his fists, and threw himself onto the couch next to Sakura, "Stupid idiot… He has no idea what he's doing…"

"Actually, I do," Naruto grinned sleazily as he stumbled into the room, arms full of sake bottles, "I've been doing this since I was twelve, Sasuke. I know exactly what I'm doing," The grin dropped from Naruto's face as he placed his bottles on the coffee table, "I know exactly what to do to keep the pain away. I know exactly how to make myself numb to the agony I'm forced through every day. I know how to keep myself pretending to still be alive for the sake of the people who I don't want to bother with me dying… And tonight you'll all learn how I keep my masquerade intact for everyone beyond my own four walls."


	3. Letting It Out

"What are you talking about?! What on earth do you need to numb yourself from?!" Sasuke was enraged; his gait gave the impression that given the chance, he would quite happily punch Naruto in the face for the things he was saying.

Naruto scoffed and opened into a bottle of sake, "_You_ first and foremost…"

"What?!" Sasuke growled and narrowed his charcoal eyes, "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"So what, Sasuke made fun of you when we were children?! That's your reasoning?! That's not acceptable, Naruto!" Sakura wasn't sure how to feel other than angry and shaken from the nonchalant attitude Naruto had about all of this nonsense, and the fact that he wasn't the person she thought she had known all these years.

"None of you understand," Naruto growled, taking a long drink from the bottle, "Sasuke... I trusted you... You were my best friend... I loved you, and you abandoned me, just like everyone else... You left me to rot here in this hell hole just so you could kill some one who didn't deserve a second of your thought. Much less your life."

Sasuke visibly flinched, now unsure of whether or not he could justify his anger.

"I've been beaten, abused, and looked down upon my whole life," Naruto retrieved his pipe from the table and took another breath from the stinking smoke, "I will always be unloved, hated, and so on... I've always been alone. I'll always _be_ alone. This just helps me cope with that fact."

"What are you talking about...?" Sai finally butted in after sitting quietly for quite a while, "Why don't you talk to us? We're your team. We're supposed to be here for you."

"Haha! You're kidding right?" Naruto giggled, laying back against the cool glass of the coffee table, "You and Sasuke are to wrapped up in yourselves to pay attention to me. And Sakura just ignores it all... I tried that. It has never done me any good. It's only caused me frustration and heartache. And I'm done with heartache."

Silence hit again, only broken by the flare of Naruto's lighter, and the clinking of sake bottles against the table. Everyone was at a loss for what to say until Naruto spoke again.

"God... It's hooooooot in here..." He groaned and rolled on to the floor, flailing his arms a bit.

"Why don't you turn on a fan...?" Sakura mumbled softly, playing with the hem of her sleeve.

"I don't have any. People break in and steal them when ever I get a new one. It's a waste of money," Naruto slurred, pulling off his shirt.

"Oh my god!" Sakura squealed, "What's wrong with your skin?!"

"Huh...? Oh..." Naruto looked down at his scar strewn chest, "Those are from a man they made me stay with when I was six. He had a great love for fishing, and would make sure the hooks were sharp enough by testing them on my chest."

"W-what...?" Sakura shuddered, "He cut you with fishing hooks...? What kind of a person-"

"What was his name?" Sasuke's hair fell over his eyes, and his fists were clenched on his lap.

"It doesn't matter..." Naruto sighed and took another swig from the bottle cradled limply in his arms, "It was a long time ago..."

"It does matter! What about the other ones?! The ones on your arms!? The ones on your face?!" Sasuke stood, shaking furiously, and almost yelling, "Who did those, Naruto!? What were their names!?"

The light kicked on in the kitchen, flickering softly. Naruto stood, swaying and leaning to the left. His face was down cast, and hidden from the rest of the team. Sasuke's breath came in short angry huffs, but his glare softened as they both stood, facing each other.

"The ones on my face were done by some of the villagers here in an attempt to starve me out once when I was nine. It was their way of dehumanizing me, so that they wouldn't feel guilty about denying a child food..." Naruto's voice sounded distant and emotionless, "The ones on my arms I did myself."

Sai stepped forward, taking Naruto's arm in his hand, and looking over the puffy scars, "What made you do them...?" Sai turned his own arm beside Naruto's, showing him the faded ivory lines of his own.

Naruto smiled a genuine understanding smile at Sai, "The ones on my right are for every day Sasuke was gone... The ones on the left are for every time Sakura ever called me a screw up or made fun of me for something I couldn't help."

Sai smiled back as he let Naruto's arm fall to his side, "So you haven't in a while? When did you stop?"

"A few months ago, I think," Naruto yawned and swayed a bit, his earlier activities finally catching up with him, "It's been since Sasuke came home. Sakura had a distraction, so I didn't need it any more."

"I understand."

"You hurt yourself because of me?" Sasuke's voice cracked uncharacteristically. Sakura was bawling, face hidden by her hands; for now she would let Sasuke speak for the both of them.

"I didn't hurt me... You hurt me," Naruto replied softly and turned toward the buzzing in the kitchen.

As he disappeared into the kitchen, Sasuke sunk back down to the couch, confused and upset. Quiet settled back down on the three like a blanket of snow. No one knew what to do anymore, much less how to even begin to process what Naruto had told them. Their reality had been shattered by the stories they had unknowingly shielded themselves from for years.

"Why?" Sakura sniffled, eyes red from her tears.

"I wish I had known..." Sai mumbled softly to himself, "I would have made more of an attempt to listen if I had."

Sasuke looked between the two, "Why did Tsunade say not to stop him...? He could die if he keeps this up..."

"Lady Tsunade always has a reason for everything, Sasuke," Sakura spoke up, "We'll ask her tomorrow morning, okay...?"


	4. Tell All

Team Seven sans Naruto, walked wearily the following morning into the Academy, and ultimately the Hokage's Office. Babysitting Naruto all night had proved to be a daunting and tiring task. As the night wore on he became more destructive and angry, breaking empty bottles against the walls of his apartment, and yelling obscenities at figures his mind came up with, effectively scaring the living soul out of Sakura. His insane rage would come and go through out the night, ebbing as he became seemingly tired and picking back up with intensity randomly. The Team was exhausted.

Their footsteps were heavy on the stone steps to Tsunade's office, and no conversation interrupted their silent walk. Sakura led the way, with Sasuke a quick second behind. Sai slipped lazily behind them, half asleep, and with the mission file sticking out from his folded arms.

"Lady Tsunade...?" Sakura poked her head timidly into the office, "We brought you the report... and we have some questions for you..."

Tsunade looked up from her morning sake and nodded, looking much less stressed out and better rested than she had in months, "Of course, of course. I figured you all would. Was anyone injured or anything?"

Sasuke shook his head solemnly, "No..."

"Lady Tsunade, why did you instruct us not to stop Naruto?" Sakura went straight to the issue at hand, "And how come you never told any of us about this? We're his team. We should know about these things."

Tsunade stood and turned to face the view of Konoha from the window behind her desk, "I never told you because I was asked not to. And if I am the only person that boy trusts because of it, then so be it, but I will not lie to him. I will not be another outlet for his anger," She sighed softly and took a drink from her cup, "And I told you not to stop him for your own safety. Nothing you can say or do will help. I've tried. Not even I can subdue him when he get's that way. His chakra becomes ridiculously powerful..."

The Team processed this information surprisingly quick.

"Does he really hate us...?" Sakura mumbled.

"No. He just doesn't trust you," Sai and Sakura looked to each other, "If you can show him you can be trusted... Maybe then you can help him. Though... It would take longer for Sasuke than any of you... Sai, you should be able to do so fairly quickly, having done less harm than the other two. Sakura, you should be able to secondly, assuming you quit calling him things simply because it's easy to blame him."

"Sai had a... bonding moment with him last night... over his scars," Tsunade turned to face Sasuke as he spoke, "That should help... right?"

"It should. Yes," Tsunade raised an eyebrow towards Sai, "Scars?

"Yes, Lady... I used to have the same affliction..." Sai shuffled awkwardly, "It does... feel a lot like a kinship, having that. I could definitely build on it, assuming that's what you think will help him."

"Good... I mean... Not good, but yes. Build on that."

Sasuke straightened up and stepped forward, "I will do the best I can... But I am not good with this... other people... thing... Tsunade, what would you have me do?"

"Open up. He thought you were friends. Show him you think that, too," Tsunade reached her hand out for the file, and waved her hand dismissively, "Go. You're all free until 5:30. Try to get some sleep."


	5. Stories

Sasuke came early to Naruto's apartment that afternoon, palms sweating lightly. He had never felt this level of nervousness before, even when he was working with Orochimaru. Then he was killing and maiming innocent people, but now... though Naruto was obviously the farthest thing from innocent... his life was hanging in the balance. Sasuke had no idea why he felt so strongly about saving Naruto from himself (perhaps guilt from what he had done was finally seeping through) but he knew he was willing to do what ever he could to save the first person he had ever considered a friend.

Swallowing his unexplained nervousness, Sasuke knocked sharply, and readjusted his bag across his shoulder.

Clicking came from inside the apartment from what, Sasuke was guessing, was Naruto unlocking the door. It opened fully, with no hesitation from within.

"You're early," Naruto mumbled, pulling a black shirt over his head in the middle of the doorway.

"Um... yeah..." Sasuke cleared his throat awkwardly, " You know... You shared with us last night, so I thought I'd come early and share... _with you_..."

A huge grin spread over Naruto's face, lighting it up in the same way Sasuke remembered from when they were younger. Stepping back to let Sasuke in, Naruto nodded enthusiastically, " Yeah, yeah, sure. Come on in, teme."

"Thanks..." The outer corner of Sasuke's mouth turned up in a smirk at the old name calling.

"So... what's in the bag?"

"Clothes and stuff for tomorrow..." Sasuke walked in, leaving Naruto to close the door behind him. The couch was still cleared off from the night before, so Sasuke sat there, and placed his bag in his lap, "I also have some things... I want to show you..."

Naruto rushed to sit beside him, obviously excited. He plopped down on the couch next to Sasuke, bright blue eyes scanning the bag's general shape, "Show me? You want to show me things? Like what?"

"Like..." Sasuke undid the bag's tie and slid his hand inside. He pulled out a plain black leather book from the side. The book was medium sized, and on the spine his clan's crest was painted artfully, "This. This is a book my mother was working on before she died... It has pictures from when Itachi and I were children. She wrote little stories about what was happening beside the ones that were particularly special to her..."

"So like... Baby teme?" Naruto giggled at himself, "I can't wait to see that."

Sasuke looked down at the book, trying to convince himself this was a good idea, "Yeah... baby me... We can go through it together if you want, and then while we're going through... If... you have any questions or anything... You can ask them, and I'll answer them."

"No matter what they are?"

"No matter what," Sasuke swallowed nervously, and gently opened the book to the first page. A title page with one single picture of his mother, father, brother, and himself.

"Is that your mother?" Naruto asked curiously, moving closer to look over Sasuke's shoulder. Sasuke mustered all of the strength inside himself to not get weirded out by the human contact he normally avoided at all costs.

"Yes..." Sasuke smiled softly, "That's her... And that man beside her is-... _was_ my father. Itachi is the taller one beside him, and I'm the one my mother is holding."

"You all looked so perfect," Naruto sighed, "Though... You're father looks really... angry."

"He had a temper. Especially when it came to Itachi..." Sasuke mumbled, "He liked to pull mean pranks, and my father hated them."

"Pranks? Like what?"

Sasuke thought for a moment before flipping the page. On one side was a young smiling Sasuke, covered in fuzzy white feathers, and on the other was a snickering Itachi, with a staff in one hand," This one was when he covered me in honey and feathers while I was sleeping and told me that I was turning into a bird."

"That doesn't sound mean," Naruto scrunched up his nose in confusion.

"Then he told me that if I got a good jump off something I could fly," Sasuke looked pointedly at Naruto, "I broke my leg trying to fly off of the garden house."

"Oh..."

"Yeah..." Sasuke turned the page. The next page was a picture of him and his mother planting beans in the family garden, "She liked to help things grow..."

"I don't know very much about mothers..." Naruto spoke quietly, "I never had one... But I think... yours was a good one."

"She was," Sasuke smiled down at the image of his mother working hard, but smiling, "I think out of every one in my clan... I miss her the most..."

The boys sat quietly for a while, flipping through pages of family photos and reading the stories out loud. Sasuke didn't remember a lot of it, but most of the pictures had the guide of his mother's eloquent hand writing to help him along. Naruto smiled and frowned when he was supposed to, and asked questions as they came to him, trying to stay on subject with the actual pictures and stories themselves.

Thirty minutes in to it, knocking sounded once again from the front door.

* * *

_Figured we could use a little fluff in contrast to the past couple of chapters, haha, and it's good for this particular plot. I should get at least another chapter in today. :)_


	6. The Message Underneath

"I'll get it," Sasuke nodded to Naruto as he handed him the precious book his mother had pieced together so long ago, "You can... keep looking if you want..."

"Really?" Naruto raised an eyebrow, feeling like he was intruding without Sasuke showing him his life before tragedy struck himself.

"Yes... You've... earned it," Sasuke choked out. He turned quickly, not bothering to analyze the look on Naruto's face like he normally would given the circumstance. Sai and Sakura had finally made their way down, and when Sasuke opened the door they gave him an odd look.

"Why...?" Sakura asked, genuinely confused, "You're here early...?"

"Hn," Sasuke looked to Sai, who was loaded down with several bags of varying sizes.

"He's carrying my stuff," Sakura grinned and pushed by Sasuke, "He offered, that's so sweet, right?"

"You look like a pack mule," Naruto mumbled from the couch, not looking up from the book Sasuke charged him with.

Sai stumbled inside and dropped all of the bags on Naruto's dirty floor with a huge sigh of relief. No one bothered to help him fix them in the corner. Sakura decided to make herself at home and go straight back to the kitchen, and Sasuke sat back down beside Naruto and pretended to examine the floor.

"You guys are so helpful," Sai growled sarcastically as he stacked the last of Sakura's bags together.

"There's no food in here!" Sakura's voice sounded muffled, "Do you not eat?!"

"Sometimes I don't," Naruto still wasn't looking up from the book, thoroughly enthralled, "I eat out sometimes. I don't have money to put into groceries. I have other things to spend it on."

"Then that's what we're doing tonight," Sakura firmly stated as she came back into the living room, "And then we're cleaning this place. If we're going to live with you, you're gonna have to help out."

That made Naruto look up.

"WHAT?! Live with me?! No, no, no! No one ever said anything about that!" He whined, handing the book to Sasuke and standing up, "I don't have enough room or money for that!"

"I do..." Sasuke mumbled.

"What are you talking about, teme?"

Sakura looked to the silent one in astonishment, "Sasuke...? Are you really offering to-"

"Yes... You can all come live on the Uchiha compound with me until we... get to a place where it is no longer required," Sasuke couldn't believe the words coming out of his mouth, "I think Tsunade would like that, don't you, Sakura...?"

"Mmhmm," Sakura nodded and looked to Sai, "Sai? Are you okay with that?"

Sai nodded too and all three looked to Naruto. He stood quietly for a moment, switching his gaze between the three suspiciously. He wasn't sure how much he could trust that. Sasuke was acting particularly weird about everything. Sharing his past, and now his home...? It just wasn't normal for the anti-social Uchiha. Naruto huffed softly and threw his hands into the air exasperatedly.

"Fine."

"Go pack your things. We'll go a head and take our stuff over to Sasuke's, okay? Sai, you can stay here with Naruto while he packs, and we'll take your stuff too," Sakura grinned. Though she no longer felt the burning desire to be with Sasuke, the prospect of finally being in his house after all these years made her giddy, "We'll be back to get you all in an hour or so."

"Alright..."

* * *

"Sasuke, why did you volunteer your house...?" as excited as she was, Sakura was still rather curious as to why he was suddenly allowing the team to intrude on him after years of solitude.

"It's safer there... And we can monitor his actions better," Sasuke reasoned as he unlocked the front gate, "There's no alcohol in my house, and I can keep his other habits out easier as well. It's a controlled environment, which is really what he needs..."

"And how do you know what he needs...?" Sakura slid inside, bags in hand. She managed to keep from gasping at the beauty of the place, but her mouth hung open in an "O" and her eyes still became wide.

"I just... do... okay?" Sasuke grumbled, carrying bags up the front steps and into the main hall, "Sakura?"

The pink haired girl was no where near. At least that he could tell. That made him very, very nervous and sent him rushing back outside in a hurry.

"D-did you do all this...?" She was leaning over a soft pink rose on the side of the walk way, "Your home is so beautiful! And I've only seen the outside!"

"Yes... I plant often..." Sasuke sighed, flushed slightly, "Put your bags inside the front door so we can retrieve Sai and Naruto..."


	7. How Does Trust Work?

_**Warning**: Naruto gets mouthy in this chapter._

_Should have a much longer chapter up tonight._

* * *

"There are a few rules for staying here," Sasuke sighed, as Naruto and Sai shuffled inside, "And in order for you to stay here, you'll have to follow them..."

"Rules?" Naruto furrowed his brow a little.

"Yes. Rules," Sakura interrupted, "Like, that there will be no alchohol on these grounds."

"What the fuck? Are you serious?" Naruto's voice rose a little in irritation of what he realized his teammates were doing, "I'm not going to do that, Sakura... I'll just go back home."

"Except that you can't," Sai looked nervously between Sakura and Sasuke, "Tsunade has approved the order that you are to live here until further notice..."

"What the fuck?!" Naruto seethed, fists clenched at his sides. He had never felt so angry before. He was used to being tricked, and lied to, but it was the principle of the thing. The fact that he had let himself open, and now they were taking what he needed to survive away from him, "I can't believe you guys!"

"It's for your own good, Naruto," Sakura replied firmly, "We're doing this to help you, not hurt you."

"What the fuck ever, Sakura!" his voice was almost a growl, but as Naruto glared at the three, he realized how adament they were. There was no way he was getting out of this one. It would either be living with his teammates under their rules, or something considerably worse for him, "Fine... I won't drink..."

"Or smoke pot," Sasuke responded emotionlessly, hands on his hips.

"...or...smoke..." Naruto whispered angrily.

"What? I can't hear you, Naruto," The bastard must have been enjoying this more than Naruto thought.

"Fucking- I won't smoke, you fucking jackass," Naruto growled out through his teeth, glaring heavily at his seemingly apathetic teammate.

"Good..." Sakura sighed, "Thank you, Naruto for agreeing to our terms."

"Whatever... Sadists..."

Sasuke sighed and picked up his own bag that he had originally packed for Naruto's house. He was getting a headache from all the yelling, "Come on... I'll show you all to your rooms..."

He led them through the hall and into another, much longer one. It was bare other than the dark blue carpet laying across the expanse of the floor, and the walls were painted a lighter shade of the same color. Doors stood four or five feet from each other on both sides, each one was painted either red, blue, or left white in a pattern. At least ten rooms lined the hallway, each hiding behind one of the colored doors.

"The red doors are off-limits... Blue are guest bedrooms, and white are bathrooms," Sasuke explained, while walking down to the end of the hall. He opened the farthest blue door in the hall, and turned to face his guests, "Naruto... This is your room."

"Do we not get to pick?" Sai raised an eyebrow in curiosity and asked in a tone that expressed both entertainment and superiority.

"Naruto doesn't," Sasuke glared and pointed to the red door across the hall, "I want his room across from mine until we can trust him."

"You can trust me!" Naruto interjected.

"No. We can't," Sasuke glared harder at the blonde, "I don't trust you to abide by my rules, and until you prove to me otherwise, I will continue to not trust you."

"Bastard!" Sasuke really knew him entirely to well.

Sasuke sighed and gave Sakura pointed look, "You and Sai can pick your own rooms out of the other blue doors... Go ahead and get all of your things put up... I'm going to start dinner. You can come help me if you'd like afterwards. I'm sure the other two won't be any help at all."

"Hey!" Sai huffed, "I can cook!"

"Then you can help, too. I don't really care," Sasuke rolled his eyes. Sai was an odd person, "Just get settled and come find me when you're done. Go back to the main hall, and go through the back door. You'll be out in the courtyard, and just walk straight across. The kitchen and dining area is in that building."


	8. Who Are You?

Naruto was very very irritated with his situation. All he wanted to do was grab a bottle of sake, smoke a joint and pass out in his own bed. He was even willing to overlook the fact that said bed was squeaky and painful to sleep in, if only he could get what he needed to sleep tonight. But rather than what Naruto wanted to do; the entirety of Team Seven was in Sasuke's kitchen, yelling and laughing and cooking with each other. He was starting to get a headache.

"Hey! We should invite Kakashi-sensei over!" Sakura was glowing from the interactment with "her boys" and she was genuinely having fun. Even if every one else was still a tad bit moody.

"That's a great idea," Sai smiled, eyes curving up as he did.

"Tch... Dobe, you're not doing anything and the rest of us are up to our elbows in grease," Sasuke sighed, and met his eyes with Naruto's. The other boy was sitting by the sink and watching the rest of them cook due to Sakura's wish for Naruto to be within eyesight at all times other than bed time, "Use the phone by the oven and call Kakashi."

"Don't tell me what to do, bastard!" Naruto walked over to the phone regardless of his irritated outburst, and Sasuke just rolled his eyes. Naruto pulled the phone off the wall grumpily, and jabbed in the number for Kakashi's house, "Hey... The Team is at Sasuke's, do you want free food or what?"

"Naruto!" Sakura shot the blonde an irate look.

"They're making chicken, and rice, and something else... No, I haven't touched a damn thing. They were afraid I'd burn it... Yeah, sure, I don't think they'd mind... Wha~? ...Fuck you!" Naruto thrust the phone back on to it's docking area and stomped back to his chair like an angry three year old.

"...Well?" Sakura eyed the boy with a hint of confusion.

"He's coming and he's bringing Iruka," then as an after thought, "And he's a great big douchebag, don't listen to a word he says!"

"Uhm... Sure..." Sai mumbled, wondering what on earth could've been said to elicit such a reaction from Naruto, and how he might be able to possibly recreate it.

A good twenty minutes or so passed as the team continued working on the meal, and no one other than Sakura (who was intent on telling them all about how Ino had tried to curl her hair and how dumb that was) spoke. Sai and Sasuke we're content with the semi-silence, and Naruto seemed a little less agitated than he was previously.

_It's almost peaceful_, Naruto thought, _Maybe this won't be as hard as I thought... And maybe I can find a way to get out on my own tomorrow afternoon... At least long enough to find something to take down the stress._

That's when Kakashi burst in, Iruka hot on his heels, "Hey, hey, Team! That smells wonderful. Almost like you guys tried!"

Sakura slapped the Jounin with her grease covered hand and began yelling about how she was a great cook and how he would eat what ever they made, and enjoy it or she'd make sure he did. Everyone else ignored the exchange, Sai and Sasuke in favor of taking the food out to the dining table, and Naruto in order to hug Iruka tightly.

"Hey, 'Ruka-san," Naruto smiled softly as he wrapped his arms around the older man, "Haven't seen you in a while..."

"It's nice to see you again too, Naruto," Iruka grinned, rubbing the blonde boy's back soothingly, "How are things?"

"They're... loud..." Naruto sighed and stepped back so he could follow everyone else into the gigantic dining area.

Every one ate until they were beyond full, laughing, and remembering for some time. Even Sasuke allowed himself to actually smile as Naruto lightened up (his guess was that it was because Iruka was there) cracking jokes at Sai and Kakashi's expense, and sharing old stories from when they had just started out. What he wouldn't give to see the boy back to normal like this again. Back to his silly, happy self, instead of the angry, depressed one they had been made to see by Tsunade.

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, Sasuke became a little distant from the rest of the conversation. Of course that couldn't happen. That's not what Sasuke really wanted at all. He didn't want Naruto to hide from them anymore. He wanted him to be genuine and open, even when he wasn't happy. He wanted more than what was happening for Naruto. He wanted him to be free from the burdens he'd lain on himself.

"Naruto..." Everyone looked to the solemn Uchiha, but his coal black eyes only focused on one pair of cerulean, "Tell us about yourself."


	9. Naruto

"What do you mean, tell you about me?" Naruto scrunched his nose up as if he was smelling something absolutely rancid, "Why do you want to know anything about me? You never have before."

The way he stated it wasn't what bothered Sasuke, rather than the truth behind it. He really had never asked anything about Naruto. He had never wanted to before. In fact, now that he was thinking about it, none of them had. It made him feel suddenly very guilty, and one look around the room told him that every one other than Iruka felt the same way.

"I know... But I want to now," Sasuke frowned, "Really..."

"We all do!" Sakura chimed in, trying to help a little, "We've missed a lot about you, Naruto... We want to know the real you. We wanna know who you really are."

The rest of the team, even Kakashi, who only had a basic understanding of what was going on, shook their heads in silent agreement. They really did want to know. For now the boy was a mystery, and Team Seven was never really good at letting a mystery go by unsolved.

Naruto sighed and pushed himself away from the table enough to pull his legs into his chair, "Well... what do you want to know, I guess...?"

"When did you start drinking...?" Sakura asked quizzically, and Kakashi squinted his visible eye at the blonde, "And how?"

"I started when I was around thirteen. What do you mean by how?" Naruto frowned. Kakashi sighed in realization, but everyone ignored him.

"How did you get the alcohol?" Sai rolled his eyes and slid his face onto the table in his signature awkward way.

"I guess, it's kind of... stolen..."

"Naruto Uzumaki!" Iruka stood and slammed his fists on the table, making the items on it rattle.

"Can we talk about that later, Iruka-san...?" Naruto cowered in his seat. He only added the honorific when he knew he was in trouble. Not that it helped just a whole lot.

Iruka positively glowered with irritation, but he sat back down and crossed his arms silently. This was obviously not over.

"And the smoking?" Sasuke's voice came like a whisper from the far end of the table. Some unknown emotion saturated his voice, and Naruto wasn't really sure if he liked it. It sounded almost hurt, and disappointed. Almost.

"I'm not really sure," Naruto scratched the back of his neck nervously, "And I just bought it... You can find it anywhere, and most people who sell don't care who they're selling to, as long as they make money from it, and don't get caught... What else do you want to know...?"

"How old are you?"

"What kind of question is that?!" Naruto slapped Sai's arm to show his displeasure with the other young man's awkwardness, "I'm the same age as I've always been, you freak."

_Leave it to Sai to ask something that makes no damn sense... _Naruto thought to himself as he rubbed the bridge of his nose and glared around the room, _This is giving me a headache..._

"What are you trying to numb yourself from...? You know... Besides us," Sakura followed suit of Sasuke and a frown found her face as well.

Naruto thought about how to answer for quite a while. He thought about lying. He thought about telling them that it wasn't any of their business, and to fuck off. But he couldn't make himself do it. He was already giving his team the truth, so why stop now? No.. It was time they knew.

"From the villagers... from the beatings... from the pain..." Naruto mumbled, "And I'm so very very tired of being alone... Not a soul in the world to protect me... and at the same time I don't want help, because I should be able to do it on my own... But I can't, and I'm stuck, so I just drown it out and try to ignore it all, Sakura..."

"Idiot," Sasuke's face was downcast, shrouded in shadow when Naruto looked up at the emotionless voice.

"What...?"

"I said you're an idiot... Idiot..." Sasuke shook his head, raising it to glare into Naruto's sky blue eyes. His pale skin looked whiter than ever, like he was scared, "What kind of life is that? What kind of idiot doesn't ask for help when he needs it? You're not alone, stupid."

With his last words Sasuke stood and threw open the door towards the rooms. He slammed it on the way out, causing Sakura to squeak and Sai to mumble, "drama queen". Naruto never understood why the bastard had to act like that over everything.


	10. Emotional

"What's his problem?" Naruto huffed, and leaned back in his chair. The others just look at him incredulously, all wondering if he really was that dense.

"What do you mean, 'What's his problem'?!" As she stood, Sakura's chair squeaked out behind her. She had had enough of Naruto's nonsense, "Naruto, you've been lying to us_ for years_! He has every right to be pissed at you! We all do! You need to get your priorities straight! What's more important?! Us, or your stupid habits?!"

Wasting no time at all, Sakura whipped around and exited through the same door as Sasuke, presumably back to her own room.

"Normally... I stay out of these things... But Naruto..." Naruto's eyes met Sai's, a mixture of shock and confusion, "Their right... Both of them..."

"I... I know..." Naruto sighed and slid his hands over his face, the picture of defeat, "I'm sorry, Sai... I'm sorry, Kakashi and Iruka..."

"I forgive you," Sai smiled softly from across the table.

"As do I, Naruto," Kakashi's one visible eye upturned into a crescent.

"I will, too... But first... You have to promise me something. You have to promise all of us something," Iruka frowned and sat back, arms crossing again.

"What is it...?" Naruto peaked warily out from between his fingers, analyzing the older man.

"Stop this... and start talking to us. Ask for help, Naruto," Iruka's voice became softer, "We want to help you. We want to be there for you."

Silence hit for a moment as Naruto mulled it over in his mind. On one hand, this would be the hardest thing he'd ever done. He didn't know how to really truly talk to other people, especially people who actually wanted to help him. But, on the other... It would mean that he would become closer to these people. He might actually feel wanted if he could just break down his own walls.

"Alright... I'll do it, Iruka-san..." a tiny smile hinting at the corners of his mouth, Naruto stood, "I'll try, okay?"

"That's all we ever wanted from you, Naruto."

* * *

_Damn that stupid idiot. Damn him... What the hell is wrong with him? Why does he have to act like this?_

Sasuke's inner voice continued to question Naruto long after he had shut him self in his bedroom. He didn't know how to deal with any of this. Naruto had been lying to him... all of them, for years. The one person he had allowed himself to think of as a friend was no where near who he had let them think that he was.

His heart ached, and it was beginning to piss him off. Sasuke rolled over on to his stomach, and buried his face in the white satin pillow his mother had made him years and years ago.

_This is why I don't have friends... People are liars... All of them..._

His throat started to tighten as Sasuke clenched the pillow in both his arms, pulling it closer to his face. His eyes stung a little, and his breath started to become ragged.

"Don't cry, stupid," Sasuke chided himself through his teeth, "Don't cry... Don't cry."

As much as he tried to keep them in, the stupid things rolled from his eyes and into his pillow anyway. He really felt stupid now.

* * *

**_Sorry this took so long... I got a bit busy. I'll have more up tonight!_**


	11. Breakfast For Four

Sasuke woke the next morning to what sounded like pots and pans clanging in the hallway.

"What the..." Sasuke jolted into a sitting position, a little dazed. The clothes he wore yesterday were wrinkled up around him, and his hair was sticking up in weird directions. Half of his navy blue comforter was on the floor, and the rest was tangled up around his feet. His nose wrinkled softly as the faint smell of burning meat wafted into his room, "What's going on...?"

The Uchiha pulled his legs from their blanket prison and stood, wavering a bit. His eyes felt heavy and swollen. Stumbling quite a bit, Sasuke made his way to his door, more concerned that his team mates might be burning down his family's house than the state of himself.

_The hallway looks clear... _Sasuke shifted his eyes up and down the corridor. It was completely as he had left it the night before. He straightened up and pulled his door closed behind him as Sakura came vaulting out of her own room in a pink knee length nightgown.

"What's going on?! Is the house okay?! Where's Naruto?!" Sakura panted, desperation on her face, until... "S-Sasuke?! AHAHAHAHAHAH! Your hair looks insane! Hahahaha!"

"Shut up, Sakura..." Sasuke mumbled and glared at her, and then brushed past her and toward the kitchen area.

"How does it even do that?! That's crazy!" Sakura giggled, following behind him. She had no qualms about poking fun at him now that her old crush was just her friend. She enjoyed it, actually.

"Shut... up..." Sasuke sighed angrily, "Seriously... I can't help it..."

"Yo, Sasuke-san. Sakura-chan," Sai followed up behind the other two, clad in a big black shirt and shorts. His hair looked normal until Sasuke glanced at him and saw the huge cowlick on the boy's left side.

"Hey, Sai," Sakura beamed, "The sounds wake you up too?"

"And that burning smell... It's obviously not you two... So, Naruto?" Sai's voice remained as unreadable as always.

Sasuke didn't answer. As soon as Sai finished speaking he picked up the pace, practically running into the dinning room and throwing back the door to the kitchen. There stood Naruto in a black wife-beater and his orange pants with a plate full of onigiri. The kitchen was a mess. Flour was all over the floor, and the utensils drawer was completely pulled from it's shelving. Not to mention the state of the sink, and counter areas.

"Oh, hey... It was supposed to be a surprise, but I guess I was to loud," Naruto grabbed the back of his neck in his signature nervous gesture, and set the plate down, "Sorry, 'bout that."

"Wha-... What is this?" Sakura peaked in from behind Sasuke, "Naruto, is that breakfast?"

"Yeah..." Naruto grinned nervously, "Or, it's supposed to be. The rice and meat is edible, but I'm not so sure about the rest."

"Oh..." Sasuke breathed, eyes latched on to Naruto's smile. It might not have been happy, but it was genuine and it was there. The stupid thing made his heart ache a little bit.

"Well, then! Let's eat, ne?" Sai chimed in, head bobbing between the crack of Sasuke and Sakura's heads.

"Okay!" Sakura giggled and pushed past Sasuke, picking up the onigiri in one hand and gathering a stack of plates from the top cupboard, "Naruto, get some chopsticks and help me set the table. Sai and Sasuke can get the drinks and the pork."

Naruto nodded and grabbed a handful of chopsticks, following after Sakura, a little smile on his lips.

"So strange..." Sai shook his head as if he were the most normal being on earth and the rest of them were the weird ones, "Come on, Sasuke-san."

Sasuke shook himself from his thoughts and followed after Sai quietly. He had no idea what was going on. But now that he knew the house and Naruto were okay, he wondered why on earth he had left his bedroom without fixing his hair and changing into some fresh clothes.


End file.
